The Shun Taiyo is the Blade Show’s Kitchen Knife of the Year®

The Shun Taiyo is the Blade Show’s Kitchen Knife of the Year®

Shun Cutlery returned home from the Blade Show with a Kitchen Knife of the Year award for the stunning Shun Taiyo.

The annual Blade Show awards represent the pinnacle of knife-industry awards. The winners are selected by an overwhelming vote of industry members (including representatives from Shun’s competitors). Winners are judged on a range of criteria—from design, innovation, and function to craftsmanship and quality.

Taiyo means “sunrise” in Japanese and Shun named this limited edition kitchen knife “Taiyo” for the sunrise-like rays that illuminate the blade surface of this spectacular knife. “We aspired to the highest level of quality on the Taiyo,” said Steve Grutbo, Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Housewares Division. “Absolutely nothing was left undone on this superb knife.”

The Taiyo’s blade is a traditional Japanese kiritsuki blade. Japanese master chefs favor this multi-purpose blade shape and use it in ways similar to the European chef’s knife. The Taiyo’s blade has a cutting core of SG2 “micro carbide” steel. With SG2’s incredibly dense and pure grain structure, it takes and holds a fine edge with unparalleled durability. 160 layers (80 on each side) of Damascus cladding support the SG2 core, add beauty, and are part of the sunrise pattern. The handle is a traditional Japanese octagonal shape, but it twists and becomes rounder as it nears the bolster in order to provide a comfortable grip.

“We have challenged ourselves to be the one knife maker that stands out in the minds of the consumer for quality, design and value,” said Mr. Igarashi. “Our ultimate goal is to create a deep connection with the knife user and a sense of pride in owning a Kershaw, Shun or Zero Tolerance product.”